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We Are Shining - Kara

We Are Shining, aka producers Morgan Zarate and Acyde, are spontaneous, unpredictable and utterly uncategorisable. Their debut album Kara is a wild ride, twisting and turning from scuzzy blues riffs to squiggly, irresistible melodies, held together by ferocious rhythms and the untethered power of Acyde's voice. Anything goes: each cut is packed with details from psychedelic synths to gospel choirs. Zarate (the ex-Spacek member who has latterly gained recognition for his brilliant club-focused singles for Hyperdub) and Acyde have known each other since their '90s Mo Wax days, but it was only in 2011 that this shared vision started to take shape. They envision their music visually - if it was a film, it would be one following a journey along a lost highway - and have been inspired by house parties in Jamaica and Africa where guests would take turns to do their thing on the mic. A roster of guest singers from Shingai Shoniwa (Noisettes) to Roses Gabor get down and dirty in the We Are Shining cauldron, providing a sweet, soulful counterpoint to the dense, fuzzy layers of sound. There's an incredible energy to Kara, but We Are Shining are always in control of the propulsive kinetic thrust of their music, which sounds like nothing else out there. As Acyde puts it, "We are our own scene." www.weareshining.com